Dick Leslie Dearden (June 3, 1938 – November 2, 2019) was an American politician who was the Iowa State Senator from the 34th District. A

Democrat Democrat, Democrats, or Democratic may refer to: Politics *A proponent of democracy, or democratic government; a form of government involving rule by the people. *A member of a Democratic Party: **Democratic Party (Cyprus) (DCY) **Democratic Part ...

, he served in the

Iowa Senate The Iowa Senate is the upper house of the Iowa General Assembly. There are 50 seats in the Iowa Senate, representing 50 single-member districts across the Iowa, state of Iowa with populations of approximately 60,927 per constituency, . Each Senat ...

from 1995 to 2017 representing the Northeast part of

Des Moines Des Moines is the List of capitals in the United States, capital and List of cities in Iowa, most populous city in the U.S. state of Iowa. It is the county seat of Polk County, Iowa, Polk County with parts extending into Warren County, Iowa, Wa ...

and

Pleasant Hill, Iowa Pleasant Hill is a city in Polk County, Iowa, United States. The population was 10,147 at the time of the 2020 census. It is part of the Des Moines metropolitan area. As of July 2005, Pleasant Hill was assigned a ZIP code, 50327. History Ple ...

Education

Dearden graduated from Des Moines East High School.

Career

Dearden served on several committees in the Iowa Senate - the Appropriations committee; the Labor and Business Relations committee; the Rules and Administration committee; the State Government committee; the Ethics committee, where he is vice chair; and the Natural Resources committee, where he is chair. His prior political experience includes serving on the Polk County Central Committee since 1972, serving as Chairman of the Polk County Democrats from 1980 to 1982, and serving as a delegate to the

1996 Democratic National Convention The 1996 Democratic National Convention was held at the United Center in Chicago, Illinois, from August 26 to August 29, 1996. President Bill Clinton and Vice President Al Gore were nominated for reelection. It was the first national convention o ...

. Dearden was re-elected in 2008 with 17,704 votes, defeating Republican opponent Scott Strosahl.

Personal life

Dearden was married to his wife Sharon since 1959 and together they had two sons, David and Mark, and one daughter, Pamela. Dearden was also a veteran of the National Guard. He died on November 2, 2019, in

Des Moines, Iowa Des Moines is the List of capitals in the United States, capital and List of cities in Iowa, most populous city in the U.S. state of Iowa. It is the county seat of Polk County, Iowa, Polk County with parts extending into Warren County, Iowa, Wa ...

, at the age of 81.

Organizations

Dearden was a member of the following organizations: *

AMVETS American Veterans (AMVETS) is a non-partisan, volunteer-led organization formed by World War II veterans of the United States military. It advocates for its members as well as for causes that its members deem helpful to the nation at large. The g ...

* American Federation of State, County, and Municipal Employees retirees *

Izaak Walton League The Izaak Walton League of America, Inc. is an American environmental organization founded in 1922 that promotes natural resource protection and outdoor recreation. The organization was founded in Chicago, Illinois, by a group of sportsmen who wi ...

* Pheasants Forever *

Ducks Unlimited Ducks Unlimited (DU) is an American 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization dedicated to the conservation of wetlands and associated upland habitats for waterfowl, other wildlife, and people. History and profile In 1927, an offshoot of the Boone and ...

National Wild Turkey Federation The National Wild Turkey Federation is an international non-profit organization whose mission is 'the conservation of the wild turkey and the preservation of our hunting heritage.' It currently has more than 250,000 members in the United States ...

*Former chairman of the Polk County Democratic Party

References

External links

Senator Dick Dearden
''official Iowa Legislature site''
Senator Dick Dearden
''official Iowa General Assembly site''
State Senator Dick Dearden
''official constituency site'' * * 1938 births 2019 deaths Politicians from Des Moines, Iowa Iowa National Guard personnel Democratic Party Iowa state senators 21st-century members of the Iowa General Assembly {{Iowa-politician-stub